There are many known applications where it is advantageous to reduce the weight of one or more components of an apparatus. Examples include land and sea vehicles, aircraft and personal equipment. It is known to replace some components, such as metal components, with composite equivalents because a composite equivalent is generally much lighter than the metal component it replaces. Thus, the application of composites in components is becoming increasingly common in the search for reduced weight and increased efficiency. It is not however always appropriate to replace an entire component with a composite equivalent because the composite material may not have the necessary characteristics to form particular elements. An example is a threaded fitting. Consequently, it is known to manufacture or form a part which includes a non-composite component connected to a composite component.
As noted above, an example of an application in which it would be advantageous to use particular composite components is within an aircraft, for example as part of a landing gear assembly. However, certain components of typical landing gear assemblies, such as retraction actuators and side stays, are subject to significant axial and compressive forces. Other components may be subject to various forces and/or torque. Consequently, any partial composite component should be designed to withstand such forces and/or torque, particularly at the interfaces between composite and non-composite elements of the component.